Two criminals are hired for a straightforward job: matters get complicated. Excellent period drama, using the tropes of noir to critique capitalism and corporate greed. Lots to relish, not least a cast in depth, plus slick, confident direction, writing, and design. Recommended.
Here’s the trailer.
Natasha Romanoff reunites with her estranged fake family to disrupt a post-Soviet Russian agent programme. Patchy Marvel SF/spy adventure (the first Phase 4 movie) awkwardly balancing dysfunctional familial bickering and action set-pieces. A strong cast helps, as does a relatively low-stakes approach and some attempts at character.
Here’s the trailer.
A father makes a deal with the DEA and works undercover to save his son. This attempt at gritty drama is hampered with a trite script and a lost cast including a strange choice of lead. The result is reasonably compelling though suffering with a weak final act.
A suicidal mercenary takes on a kidnap extraction job. Overlong but stirring action drama with three (count ’em) splendid sustained combat/chase sequences. No surprises whatsoever plot-wise, but this is vigorous stuff, played commendably straight by all. 15 minutes trimmed, and it’d have been a stone-cold classic.
Hellboy battles an ancient sorceress from Arthurian legend. Famously-troubled shooting and post-production bedevilled this fantasy horror series reboot, which as a consequence is all over the place. Some good stuff, but its awkward storytelling is patched with flashbacks, dubbed dialogue, variable FX, overlength; the works. A shame.
A dramatisation of the immediate aftermath of the 1963 Kennedy murder. A well-made re-enactment, packed with detail and character actors, though necessarily plotless, and somewhat redundant as a consequence. Effectively shows the chaos of unforeseen situations though.
Two LA patrol cops cross the paths of a street gang keen to make their mark. Excellent contemporary crime drama focusing on cop camaraderie. A semi-improvised approach and use of found footage give the movie texture, as does the rapport between the lead actors. Recommended.
An ex-cop turned unlicensed private eye investigates a kidnapping. Generally effective adaptation of one of Lawrence Block’s Matt Scudder novels, which perhaps over-reaches by telescoping several books’ backstory into a single narrative. Bleak and autumnal; not one of Neeson’s lighter actioners.
Want another perspective? Here’s Xussia’s review.
A rogue cop has his son kidnapped by drug dealers. A day-from-hell thriller which lifts from Die Hard and Snake Eyes (it’s a remake of Nuit Blanch) in working to sustain momentum; for the most part it holds itself together.
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